BOSTON — With the 30-day closure of a primary rail rapid transit line set to begin this evening, the mayor of Boston has warned it will be “impossible to avoid chaos altogether.”
The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority’s Orange Line will close Friday at 9 p.m., leaving commuters to use a patchwork of commuter rail, other rail transit lines, shuttle buses, and even rental bicycles as alternatives as the transit agency engages in accelerated repairs to address long-deferred maintenance.
The MBTA announced the planned closure little more than two weeks in advance [see “MBTA to shut down Orange Line …,” Trains News Wire, Aug. 3, 2022] and released its plan for transit alternatives a week ago [see “MBTA sets plan …,” News Wire, Aug. 12, 2022]. But the Boston Globe reports that plan was still evolving as late as Thursday, with additional shuttle-bus service added to the Chinatown area and an additional stop on the bus rapid transit Silver Line.
Mayor Michelle Wu, at a Thursday press conference, urged employers not to penalize workers who arrive late during the line closure, saying the project “will impact every single commuter. Your commute will be affected in some ways even if not directly on the Orange Line.”
Boston has made changes on its streets including addition of dedicated bus lanes and restriction or prohibition of parking in some areas. Boston Chief of Streets Jascha Franklin-Hodge urged those who normally use transit not to drive to work, saying full Orange Line train is equal to a 4-mile line of traffic.
A handful of streets will be entirely closed to general traffic to aid the flow of shuttle buses, Boston.com reports.
MBTA General Manager Steve Poftak acknowledged the closure will be “very disruptive” for commuters, while saying the shutdown became necessary because of “decades of underinvestment,” public broadcaster WGBH reports. “A little over a decade ago, we were investing less than $400 milion in the MBTA on the capital side,” Poftak told a Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce event. “That’s not nearly enough.” The 2021 and 2022 capital budgets were $1.3 billion, while the fiscal 2023 budget includes $1.7 billion in capital funding.
Service is slated to resume Sept. 19. Poftak said contingenies are in place to ensure the work is done in the allotted time.
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